Vicki Zhao and China-born Singaporean businessman Huang Youlong married in 2008. Photo: Huang Youlong/Weibo
The star of iconic Chinese period drama My Fair Princess (1998 to 1999), Chinese actress Vicki Zhao, has announced her divorce from her China-born Singaporean businessman husband Huang Youlong.
The 48-year-old star said on Weibo on Dec 28: “I officially divorced Huang many years ago. Our marriage ended legally a long time ago. Any issues, speculation and news report related to him have nothing to do with me.
“I urge people to recognise this and to avoid dragging me into unfounded claims and reports. Thank you.”
Zhao and Huang, 48, married in 2008 and they have a 14-year-old daughter, whom they nicknamed Little April. It is unclear when the couple divorced.
While Zhao did not make explicit mention of issues related to Huang, recent Hong Kong news reports revealed that he is being sued in Hong Kong by a company called Wise Choice Ventures Limited for owing it more than HK$753mil (RM434.7mil).
Despite Zhao’s proclamation of divorce, Chinese netizens are sceptical. A 2024 mid-year interim financial report of Sino Golf Holdings Limited, a company which lists both Zhao and Mr Huang as shareholders, states that she is his spouse.
Zhao has not responded to doubts about her divorce.
The post comes three years after Zhao was effectively blacklisted with no explanation by Chinese authorities, though some speculate her troubles with the authorities originated from business dealings she and her husband have.
Since 2021, Zhao’s works have been taken off Chinese video streaming sites and mentions of her name have disappeared from Baidu pages about dramas like My Fair Princess, in which she plays the protagonist.
The actress’ social media presence has also gone quiet since then.
Her divorce announcement is only her second post on Weibo since 2021. She previously mourned Taiwanese romance novelist Chiung Yao after the author died earlier in December.
Zhao and Huang had previously run into legal troubles in China. In 2017, they were barred from trading in the Chinese stock market for five years and fined by the country’s securities regulator. It said they misled the market, citing their irregularities related to the takeover bid of a firm.
It is unclear where Huang or Zhao are currently based. In 2020, The Business Times reported that Huang bought a penthouse at a freehold Ardmore Park condominium near the Orchard area in Singapore for close to S$28mil (RM92.2mil). – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
